The pale, sharp blades ruthlessly pierced the hearts of the black-robed figures. As they pulled the daggers out with a desperate wrench, pillars of blood erupted from the wounds like furious fountains.
The scalding blood quickly soaked the ground, staining the black earth into a shocking red.
Once the fresh blood touched the ground, it seemed to gain a life of its own, beginning to converge toward the center of the magic formation at an incredible speed, as if drawn by an invisible force.
The magic formation, which had only been emitting a faint glow, instantly burst into a blinding red light as the blood fed it. The massive blood sphere at the center of the formation also began to rotate frantically, releasing heart-palpitating energy.
With the blood sphere’s abnormal activity, the entire underground space began to shake violently.
One by one, the candles in the room flickered out, leaving the eerie red light as the sole focus in the darkness.
“Run! Po Kong! We have to get out of this room!” Starlight shouted urgently, his voice carrying an unquestionable sense of crisis.
Po Kong reacted instantly. The room was already showing signs of collapse as fragments of stone rained down from the ceiling.
Just then, Starlight noticed the strange man in the room who still hadn't moved. He didn't seem worried about the impending collapse at all; instead, he stood up slowly and opened his arms toward the magic formation, as if welcoming something's arrival.
“Don't look! You don't want to end up like that madman, do you?”
Seeing Starlight dazed, Po Kong didn't say another word. He quickly raised his shield to protect them both and shoved Starlight toward the exit.
They fled like lightning into the tunnel they had come from. The tremors grew more intense, as if the very crust of the earth were trembling, no different from a major earthquake.
Just seconds before the entire tunnel completely caved in, the two emerged from the cave mouth covered in dust. Stones tumbling from the mountainside instantly sealed the tunnel tight.
Po Kong looked back at the collapsing mountain, his heart still pounding. “That was close! Being buried alive wouldn't have been a fun experience. By the way, what did you say that magic formation was?”
“I'm certain it was a summoning circle,” Starlight said, his brow furrowed as he stared back at the cave.
“Was it for summoning those disgusting puppets and monsters? Since the whole mountain collapsed, they should all be crushed to death, right?” Po Kong asked tentatively.
“Is it really that simple? I feel like there's more to it...” Starlight’s voice trailed off with uncertainty. The vibrations beneath their feet gradually weakened, as if the upheaval was nearing its end.
Just as they breathed a sigh of relief, Noah’s stern voice rang out abruptly.
“You two idiots better get moving! It’s not over yet! Do you really want to die that badly?”
Po Kong was startled by the sudden, unfamiliar voice and instinctively looked around, trying to find the source. “Who’s there? Where are you hiding?”
However, upon hearing Noah’s warning, Starlight immediately grabbed the confused Po Kong and started running without a second's hesitation.
For Noah to risk being discovered by shouting like that meant he must have noticed something critical. Starlight knew he wouldn't do that just for a joke.
“What did you find? I didn't see anything!” Starlight asked as they ran.
Po Kong looked at him with utter confusion, but he soon heard the mysterious voice again.
“So, you didn't notice the layout of the surroundings from the start? Think back to when you first arrived!” Noah didn't answer directly, instead posing a counter-question.
Starlight was taken aback. His mind raced as he began to meticulously recall everything he had seen and heard on their way in.
“Hey, hey, Starlight, wait! Who are you talking to? Is it... a ghost?!” Seeing Starlight conversing with the mysterious voice, Po Kong couldn't help but shiver, asking in terror.
Starlight had no time to explain Noah to him. His gaze fell upon the fence that wound along the edge of the bandit camp in the distance, and a realization dawned on him.
He finally understood what Noah was talking about.
A circle—the foundation of almost every magic formation. And the fence surrounding the entire camp formed a massive circle!
Those black-robed figures hadn't just inscribed a formation in the underground space; they had used the fence as a framework to turn the entire camp into a massive magic formation.
Where the mountain wall blocked the path, they had cleverly used the tunnels extending downward to complete the outline.
Even the seemingly chaotic and shoddily constructed shacks were not simple; their peculiar shapes formed the runic symbols of this giant formation.
“Could it be that the formation we saw earlier was just the key to start all this? Their real goal is this massive formation! With a formation of this scale, what kind of terrifying entity are they trying to summon?”
Starlight felt a chill run down his spine.
Before he could explain it to Po Kong, the change occurred at the fence nearby.
The exposed wooden stakes were suddenly covered in wriggling black lines, which were spreading toward the interior of the camp at an alarming speed. Everything those black lines touched was rapidly corroded.
In the blink of an eye, the lush green grass on the ground turned yellow and then withered into wisps of black ash, vanishing into the air.
The remaining horses and poultry in the beast pens seemed to sense the coming danger, letting out panicked cries.
Even as they tried their best to escape, the black lines mercilessly enveloped them, forming black cocoons of various sizes.
Seeing the black lines about to cover the entire circular fence, Starlight and the other finally reached the gap where they had sent the captives out and jumped through.
The moment they stepped outside the camp’s perimeter, countless shrill screams erupted behind them. The thousands of bandits still inside the camp had finally realized something was wrong.
Under the power of this giant magic formation, ordinary people had no way to resist. They could only watch as the black lines enveloped them, feeling the despair and fear as their bodies were gradually corroded away.
The shrill screams lasted only a few seconds before cutting off abruptly. The entire camp fell into a deathly silence, as if even the air had frozen.
Looking through the gaps in the fence, everything inside the camp had turned pitch black. Not a single ray of light escaped, making it look like an abyss that swallowed everything.
“Such high-purity dark elements... only a Saint Rank expert could achieve this... No, that's not right! Without the aid of a magic formation, even a guy like Carlos couldn't pull off such a terrifying feat!”
Noah had moved to Starlight’s chest on his own. Facing the deep black void, his voice was filled with shock.
“Power beyond the Saint Rank? You’re not saying that’s the power of a god, are you?” Starlight swallowed hard, his voice trembling slightly.
Only then did Po Kong notice that the source of the voice was an old book on Starlight’s chest.
Despite his confusion, he firmly denied their speculation.
“Your guess is wrong. That power is far from divine... If the power of a god could be wielded so easily, this world would have changed beyond recognition long ago!” Po Kong spoke with unquestionable conviction.
“You're right. Sacrificing just a few thousand lives could never condense divine power. But the current situation is already beyond what two people who haven't reached the Saint Rank can handle. Get out of here! Or it'll be too late!”
Noah didn't argue with Po Kong. After glancing at the endless darkness, he began urging them to retreat.
By now, the high concentration of dark elements had corroded almost everything in the camp. If one were to look down from above, they would see a massive black circular mark deeply branded into the earth.
As the two turned to flee into the nearby forest, the black on the ground began to rapidly contract toward the center.
Every place the black had once covered seemed to have been stripped of its original color, leaving only a deathly pale landscape that stood in sharp contrast to the shrinking black zone.
Rate on N.U.
